Speakers: Community persisting through challenges

In sizing up the state of the Petoskey community on Friday, several speakers noted local institutions’ persistence through an economically challenging time.

The Petoskey Regional Chamber of Commerce’s annual State of the Community Luncheon drew more than 200 people to Ovation Hall at the Odawa Casino Resort. Speakers offered status reports on the local economy, health care, education and the Bay Harbor community.

In reviewing economic trends, chamber president Carlin Smith noted that Northern Michigan hasn’t been immune to the difficulties affecting Michigan as a whole in recent years — like the effects of major downsizing in the auto industry.

“The state economy is a train wreck,” Smith said. “It really is.”

The local business community can’t wait for state officials or the automotive sector to resolve the problems, he added.

“We have to make our future right now, and it’s going to be up to us,” Smith said.

In the future, Smith said economic development likely will focus more on attracting people with entrepreneurial mindsets than on luring specific businesses to the area. While the area’s recreational opportunities and strong sense of place may help in appealing to entrepreneurs, he added that needs like broadband Internet access and convenient, affordable air service still must be addressed to some extent.

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As Petoskey school superintendent John Scholten reviewed the state of education, he noted that Michigan’s economic troubles have also had a noticeable impact on the instructional funding available to his district and others.

“The (Petoskey school board) has cut, over the last 10 years, $6.5 million out of its budget,” he said, noting that a need for additional cuts lies ahead.

“We’ll do everything within our means to protect the classrooms as we’ve done in years past,” the superintendent added.

Through the financial difficulties, Scholten said Petoskey schools still have achieved a variety of academic and athletic successes — like strong standardized test scores, National Merit Scholar status for 15 of the district’s students in the past three years and strong performances by boys’ and girls’ basketball teams this season.

The challenging economy also has had an impact on some statistics for Northern Michigan Regional Health System, like a 65 percent increase in bad patient debts over the past two years and a significant rise in care provided on a charity basis.

Even so, health system chief executive officer Reezie DeVet noted a variety of ongoing efforts to improve on the state of local health care. The health system is taking a variety of steps to enhance quality and safety in the care it delivers, and recently has earned a ranking among the top 5 percent in the nation in terms of patient satisfaction. The health system also is cooperating with area physicians to promote the use of best practices throughout the local health care community, and continuing to seek partnerships to strengthen the region’s health offerings.

An affiliation with the Spectrum Health system based in Grand Rapids remains under consideration.

“We feel very strongly that we need to be aligned with a major health system to ensure that we can be viable and provide the types of services that the community needs well into the future,” DeVet said.

Sizing up the state of the Bay Harbor community was Chris Etienne, sales director for the high-end resort’s real estate arm, Bay Harbor Properties. The resort celebrated its 15th anniversary in 2009, and Etienne shared a variety of highlights from its history.

For example, Bay Harbor was one of two Victor International resorts receiving CNBC Property Awards that recognize outstanding real estate developments in 2009. With $140 million in property taxes paid since its inception, Etienne noted that Bay Harbor now represents more than half of the tax base for Petoskey — and nearly 10 percent of Emmet County’s.

She also noted progress in the efforts by former Bay Harbor partner CMS Land to remedy seepage of caustic contaminants along parts of the resort corridor’s shoreline.

“The remedies that CMS has installed are working very well, and the focus has shifted to identifying a local disposal method (for seepage diverted from the bay),” she said.